House committee reviews H.461 to expand unpaid family, parental and safe leave

The House Committee on General Advancing on a March hearing considered H.461, a bill that would expand access to unpaid leave for workers by adding bereavement leave, safe leave and qualifying exigency leave and by broadening the statute's definitions of family, domestic partner and in loco parentis.

Committee members heard from Sophie Sodapny of the Office of Legislative Council, who outlined the bill's changes and how they differ from a prior draft (H.33). Sodapny said H.461 would align Vermont's statute with more inclusive definitions so LGBTQ+ families, low-income workers and people in nontraditional family arrangements could access caregiving leave without undue burden.

Under the bill text presented to the committee, bereavement leave would cover the death of an expanded category of family members and must be taken within one…